ephemeral glimpses
by takamiori
Summary: Brief looks into various timelines, at various places, and the people there. multiple pairings, one shot collection.
1. ch1 -- fudofuyu

**a/n: aaaahhh I really should be working on the third chapter of emerald samurai, but I have so many scenes in my head I need to get out and I'm so sorry. Anyway, I'll get on with the intro notes and rant afterwards...**

**characters/pairings: Fudou/Fuyuka**

**rating: K+**

**warnings: I get the feeling Fudou is kinda ooc but apart from that, nothing I guess?**

**notes: written on a plane at three in the morning. Formerly uploaded to my old writing blog.**

* * *

Fudou paced anxiously in the waiting room. He glanced at the clock for the fourth time in the past minute. His hands were shoved deep in his pockets so he wouldn't start gnawing on his fingers.

Five hours. It had been five hours since his wife had gone into labour and five hours since he rushed to get her to hospital in time.

Five hours, fourty nine minutes and twenty three seconds.

A door suddenly opened. Fudou glanced over at the nurse who had just appeared. She smiled gently at him.

"Fudou-san?"

"Is she alright? Did everything go ok? Oh god, she's not dead is she?"

"Just follow me."

Her answer only made him more anxious. He hurried after her, trying not to hyperventilate. Oh God, what if she was dead? What if they both were? He hadn't even been there for her, if she hadn't made it then—

The nurse pushed open the door and Fudou all but fell over himself trying to get inside.

"Fuyuka!"

"Shh… Akio, you'll wake her up…"

He heaved a sigh of relief when he heard her voice, hurrying over to the bed where his wife rested. She looked exhausted, and she had obviously been crying, but she was clutching something to her chest, and the proud look on her face told Fudou all he needed to know.

"Let me see her," He said as he sat down on the chair by her head. She nodded, a huge smile on her face, and held the baby towards him.

"Be careful with her," She warned jokingly. He nodded and took the bundle of blankets from her; the bundle that contained their child.

Fudou had never been overly fond of babies. When he was forced to house-sit some of his friend's kids, he couldn't stand the little twerps. But upon seeing the sleeping face of the little girl in his arms, Fudou's eyes filled with tears of pride. He was a father. A father! He was quite certain that he was the proudest man who ever lived at that moment.

"She's beautiful," He breathed, glancing back up at Fuyuka. Unsurprisingly, the purple haired woman was also tearful.

"I know," She whispered back, reaching out to place her hand over his. "She's going to have your eyes, I know she is."

"She's going to be as beautiful as you."

Fuyuka giggled at his words, silent tears streaming down her cheeks.

"I never thought you'd say something like that, Akio," She chuckled, withdrawing her hand and leaning back into her pillows. "It's not every day you say something nice like that."

"It's not every day I become a dad," He reminded her, hugging their daughter gently to his chest. "Christ. Don't tell anyone about this, got it?"

"I think they'll figure it out themselves…" She murmured, eyes fluttering closed. "I'm so tired, though. I think I need some sleep."

"Alright," He nodded, despite the fact she couldn't see him. "I'll stay here until you wake up."

"Really…? Don't you want to go home…?"

"Not without you and squirt here."

She laughed again, turning to face him and opening her eyes.

"Squirt? That's not the best name for our child."

"Then should we decide on one?"

"Hm…" Her blue eyes fluttered closed again. "How about… Yukiko?"

"Yukiko… Huh…" Fudou glanced down at his daughter again. "I like it. Yukiko."

"I'm—" She was cut off by her own yawn. "Glad… Goodnight then, Akio, Yukiko."

"Sleep well, Fuyuka."

Within seconds, his wife had drifted off, and was snoring lightly. He snickered quietly, turning his full attention to the baby in his arms. To his surprise, she had woken up, and was staring at him with big blue eyes.

"Hey there," He whispered quietly. "Welcome to the world, squirt," The child didn't react, simply kept staring at him. Hey, at least she wasn't crying.

"Your mommy says you're going to have my eyes, you know," He continued, face softening as he looked at her. "So enjoy those blue ones while you've got them. The Fudou gene'll get to you soon enough." She lolled her head, leaning against his chest.

"… I'm kind of an ass," He admitted quietly, glad the nurse had left earlier. "So sometimes your mommy and I might fight. But remember, squirt, that I love your mom very much. And I love you as much as I love her." With that conclusion, he leaned down and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

For a moment, he swore he saw a smile on the child's face.

* * *

**a/n: aaaahhhh so there we go,,,,,**

**wow I like this couple idk why it just seems cute to me**

**so yeah this is just gonna be a collection of various scenes I cook up in my head, au, time-fucky bullshit and all**

**so yeah,,,,,**

**I might open requests for some, later? Should I? ;u;**


	2. ch2 -- mei trio

**a/n: ahahahhaa fast update because I really wanted to write this haha... also wOW I'M SORRY FOR THE DUMB MISTAKE IN THE FIRST CHAPTER see kiddies this is why you dont check things over at three am. Aaaaanyway...**

**characters/pairings: Zhuge Liang, Hakuryuu, Amemiya Taiyou**

**rating: K**

**warnings: shitty AU based on a pixiv comic uwu (also sorry I dont know much about the three kingdoms era ahahah...)**

**notes: written last night I guess because feelings**

* * *

"One day, three years ago, I was travelling through a small village on my way back home. I was tired and sore, and sadly my mount did not make it across the mountains, but still I traveled on. It was the middle of winter, too, so it was a very difficult journey,

"The village I passed through was destroyed and desolate; perhaps it was a remainder of the invasion, perhaps it was attacked by thieves. At any rate, no one was there to offer me food or shelter. So I thought, perhaps I could rest in the remains of the inn there and recover my strength for the travels to come,

"As I entered the ruined building, I was greeting with an unexpected sound; the sound of a child crying. Surprised to say the least, I followed the sound until I came across the source. As it turns out, it was not one child I heard, but two, although one wept silently while the other did not. They turned to me when they heard me arrive, their wide, innocent eyes filled with fear. My heart went out to these two poor children, who seemed so afraid when faced with another human. So I sat by them, and offered them what meagre provisions I had left and wrapped them in my cloak for warmth. I tried to distract them from their sadness with tales from across the country. When night fell, I sang to them until my throat was hoarse, and when I could sing no longer, I drew pictures in the dust until the two children slept,

"The next day, I rose with the dawn and watched over the children as they slept. The one with the wild hair, I thought, must be the one who looked after the other. The one with long hair, I thought, must be the younger one. As they slept, I wondered why two innocent children were so frightened of people, and why they would have to live in the ruins of a dead village. When the children woke, I shared my food with them again and made them an offer,

"'Children,' I said to them. 'To you, I am a stranger, someone who has no business with you. However, I cannot leave two children by themselves to die. I ask you to accompany me back to my home, and from there we shall find you a place to stay and people to love you.' The children agreed with me, and so I set off for home with two orphans in tow,

"We travelled three more days before we finally reached my abode. There, I fed the children and gave them warm beds to sleep in for the night. The next day as we broke our fast, the child with wild hair spoke to me.  
'Teacher,' He said. 'We have nowhere else to go, and you are kind. May we stay and learn with you?' To that, I turned to the long haired boy and asked if he would like to stay too.  
'Teacher,' The boy said. 'Please let us stay.'  
How could I deny two homeless children who both wished to remain with me? Therefore, I said to the two children 'From this day on, you are my wards, and I shall protect you, love you and raise you as though you were my own, and I shall teach you everything I know.'"

"And from that day, the children have stayed with me and I love them both as though they were mine." Finishing her story, Zhuge Liang reached out and placed her hands on the smaller hands of her wards. Both smiled back at her, as they always did when she finished that story in particular. Every night, she told them a different tale, but she knew that one to be their favourite.

"Goodnight, Taiyou," She said quietly, leaning over to kiss the wild haired boy on his forehead. Once she had done so, he yawned contentedly and nestled down in his blankets. She let go of his hand and turned to the other child.

"Goodnight, Hakuryuu," She whispered, planting a kiss on the forehead of the long haired boy. He murmured a sleepy reply, before his eyes drooped shut and he dropped off into his dreams. She let go of his hand and crept out of the room, a warm smile gracing her lips.

They were a family, the three of them. Of course, she was their teacher, and they referred to her as such, but she was also their mother. Strife had taken two children from their families, but the results of that had brought them together.

Zhuge Liang, Taiyou and Hakuryuu.

* * *

**a/n: I know nothing about the three kingdoms era im sorry I tried **

**if anyone sees any inaccuracies in my history/writing/grammar/whatever, please let me know. ;;;;;;**

**also i'm probably going to write about this au a lot more because I have a strange fixation with family type relationships you dont even kNOW**


	3. ch3 -- kazemiya

**a/n: mick's doing that thing where she avoids her other fics and updates the one no one cares about ahahaha...** **i can't help it, ok, kazemiya is my otp and i jUST have so many feelings...**

**characters: kazemaru, miyasaka, hayami**

**rating: K+**

**warnings: i'm not good at writing b/b i'm sorry**

**notes: hayami is another member of the raimon track team, for those who dont know!**

* * *

_shaking, he bring the scissors closer_

_this is it_

_he's given up_

* * *

When Kazemaru walks into school that day, something feels different, but he can't quite put his finger on what it is.

The day is normal enough. It's too normal, he thinks. Nothing strange or stupid has happened in class. Soccer practice goes well. So what, he wonders, makes today feel different? Is it just him going mad? He doesn't understand why something feels off, why something feels odd.

That's when it hits him that he has not seen Miyasaka all day.

Usually, the blonde boy at least says hello to him. Sometimes they eat lunch together. But today, he has not been approached by the ever-cheerful boy.

This makes him sad, for some reason, as he strolls home after practice. He was not aware of how much he enjoys seeing his younger friend until he did not appear.

"Hey!"

Kazemaru glances up, but the greeting is not directed at him. He looks up at the top of the hill, where Hayami Maya is walking. He then notices the source of the cry. It takes him a moment, but he soon recognises who the short-haired newcomer is.

"Hey, Miyasaka," The white-haired boy responds, smiling slightly. "Like the haircut. Suits you."

Miyasaka laughs lightly, falling into step beside Hayami. Kazemaru frowns, feeling a twinge in his chest. He doesn't like that, for some reason.

"Thanks, Hayami. I'm glad it doesn't look ridiculous."

"That why you weren't in school today?"

"Well, that's part of it, I guess. My mom isn't feeling too well, so I wanted to stay home and look after her,"

"Ah, I see, I see," Hayami pauses for a moment before he speaks up again. "This your way of saying you're over him?"

Him? What does Hayami mean? Kazemaru isn't sure he wants to know. He shouldn't be listening into his friend's conversation, he knows that, but he can't bring himself to leave now.

"... I... Guess it is..." Miyasaka murmurs, bringing one hand to the back of his neck. "I only really kept my hair long 'cause he did, so... I guess it must be."

Hayami pats Miyasaka comfortingly on the shoulder.

"You did the right thing," He says quietly, gently, in a tone that Kazemaru has never heard Hayami use before. "It's good that you let Kazemaru go."

Kazemaru stops short.

His heart, on the other hand, starts working double time, _thump thump thump, _beating so hard, so fast that he's certain it's going to burst right out of his chest.

Hayami and Miyasaka keep walking.

"I know..." Miyasaka sighs, sounding almost pained. "But I don't know... It'll be hard to face him for a while, you know?"

"Yeah. I understand, don't worry," Hayami smiles at the blonde boy, an easy-going, gentle smile and Kazemaru wonders if he's ever smiled like that for Miyasaka. "I can help you avoid him for a while, if you want?"

"That'd... That'd be nice. Thanks, Hayami," Miyasaka returns the smile, and it's like the sun, radiant and bright and joyful. Kazemaru feels as though he's been stabbed, an unfamiliar emotion twisting painfully in his gut.

"Don't mention it," Hayami waves it off. "What are friends for, after all?"

"But still, thanks. You've put up with this situation for such a long time, I don't really know how you did it."

"Eh, what can I say, I have endless patience."

"Ha!"

The boys have walked out of Kazemaru's range of hearing now, but he can't bring himself to follow them.

* * *

The next day, Kazemaru can barely bring himself to get out of bed. It takes all of his willpower to get up and dressed, and even then he doesn't want to leave the house. He supposes he's in shock. He's always taken for granted that Miyasaka would be there, always just assumed that he would be encouraging him. Perhaps on some subconscious level he's always assumed that Miyasaka's feelings would last until he was ready to face his own.

He walks to school with heavy footsteps and an even heavier heart.

The day goes by normally once more, but his friends notice his sad mood. He doesn't tell them the real reason he seems so out of it, of course. He doesn't need to worry them like that. But even though he tries to ignore it, the pain in his chest just gets worse and worse and he's certain he's going to burst.

True to his words yesterday, Hayami helps Miyasaka avoid Kazemaru. It's noticeable now that he knows it's happening, and it just makes the stinging in his chest even more painful.

He's walking home, trailing his feet, eyes fixed on the ground when someone puts their hand on his shoulder. He glances behind him, surprised, and is met with a harsh glare.

"You'd better hurry up and realise what you have," Hayami Maya says angrily, fingers digging into Kazemaru's skin. "Before you lose it forever and break their heart in the process."

He doesn't know how to respond. He blinks.

"I know you were there yesterday," He continues, his expression only darkening further. "I know you heard us. Is that really how you're going to leave things?"

He doesn't know.

"Well hurry up and figure it out," Hayami almost spits at him. "Miyasaka deserves better than you, but you still mean so much to him it's ridiculous. I'm giving you one day. You either work out how you feel and tell him–" His grip on Kazemaru's shoulder tightens dangerously. "Or I'm getting there first."

With those words, Hayami leaves.

Kazemaru is left standing for a long, long time.

* * *

**a/n: aaaaaaaand that's it!**

**i guess it's up to you guys what happened next - although i personally hope kazemaru and miyasaka wound up together...**

**poor hayami, i always seem to make him the bad guy in my kazemiya fics (sorry hayami, i love you really!)**

**next up... probably something with reina!**

**(because if you know me personally you'll know i really**

**REALLY**

**love reina**

**too much)**


	4. ch4 -- hirorei

**a/n: i ship these two way too hard and it's cOMPLETELY RIDICULOUS  
ha you've discovered my secret i'm about the only i11 fan who doesn't ship hiromido and now you know yOU MUST DIE i mean what**

**characters/pairings: Reina (Ulvida)/Hiroto  
rating: T  
warnings: idk  
notes: AU — Madoka Magica style thing? idk i just want my otp to suffer i mean—**

* * *

_"Form a contract with me and become a Puella Magi!"_

_"… What's in it for me?"_

_"One wish. Anything at all. Nothing is impossible. One wish and you'll become a Puella Magi."_

_"What will I have to do?"_

_"All you need to do is fight Witches and collect their Grief Seeds to keep your Soul Gem clean."_

_"One wish…"_

_"Well?"_

_"I wish…"_

* * *

She came into class looking distant, he noted. She always looked distant or preoccupied lately. It made him sad, to be honest. Before last month, she always came over to chat to him (or mock him) and sometimes help him with unfinished homework. But now… Something was always bothering her, and he couldn't figure out what it was.

He'd asked her countless times, asked her friends, their teacher, her adopted father… But no one knew why Reina was so different now. Her father was the only one who yielded useful information; she usually went for evening walks now, and refused to let anyone accompany her.

Then, of course, there was the ring.

If Hiroto recalled correctly, the day she had shown up wearing the ring was the day it all went spiralling down. Ever since the ring had shown up, Reina had become more and more solitary, pushing the people she loved away.

He hated it.

Reina wasn't usually so cold… Well, she was, but she used to talk to people, used to sneer and mock them but that was how she showed her affection. Now, there was no teasing or sarcastic remarks; now there was only ice.

He watched with sad eyes as she sat by the window, playing with the ring on her finger.

I wish I could help her, he thought.

* * *

With a cry half-way between a scream and a sob, she dove towards the Witch once more, spear extended and ready to deliver the final blow. She was bruised and bleeding all over, and she was quite certain some bones were broken, but at this point, all that mattered was finishing off the creature.

Her spear plunged into the Witch, causing the creature to emit a horrible, gut-wrenching wail. Seconds later, it shattered — quite literally — leaving her prize in its remains. Gasping for breath, she fell to her knees and pressed to Grief Seed to her Soul Gem. The blackness dissipated from the azure surface, and she felt a great sense of relief.

Beaten as she was, she'd won.

Reina staggered to her feet and began the long treck home.

Explaining this to her dad wasn't going to be fun.

* * *

When he heard that Reina had been attacked on the streets and admitted to hospital, he nearly had a heart attack.

He'd gone straight to Endou and told him he couldn't make it to soccer practice that day.

"An important friend of mine is in hospital," He explained. "I only found out today, and I want to visit her."

Endou, of course, understood, and the moment school ended, Hiroto was on his way to the hospital.

She was hooked up to an IV, and dressed in a patient's gown, lying comfortably in bed. Yet despite this, she looked even more stressed than usual.

"I shouldn't be here," He heard her mutter. "I'm going to die."

"Why would you think that?"

She startled at his words, whipping her head around to face him. She looked guilty, as though she'd said something he wasn't supposed to hear.

"H-Hiroto… What are you doing here?"

"Visiting you, of course," He replied with a smile, taking a seat in the chair next to her bed. "But really, why would you think you're going to die? It's just a broken leg, right?"

"_Just_ a broken leg?" Her expression was somewhere between terrified and despair. "Hiroto, I won't be able to walk for weeks, maybe months… I… I won't be able to…" Her left hand went to the ring around her right index finger, twisting it viciously. "Dammit…"

"Reina, what are you talking about?"

"… It's nothing," She said finally, voice strained. "You wouldn't understand."

He felt his temper flare. "How do you know—"

"I just do!" She yelled. "I know you wouldn't because you can't /see/ that demon, you can't possibly know what's going to happen to me. If you could see him, it, whatever then maybe I wouldn't have to die but you can't and neither can anyone else," She gasped for breath, tears spilling onto her cheeks. "I'm alone in this. I'm dying because it's my fault. I'm going to turn into a monster then die."

Hiroto was quite speechless. Nothing she said made sense. He didn't…

"I don't understand," He whispered, and she _looked_ at him, a look devoid of anything.

"I knew you wouldn't," She said. "Leave."

Hiroto left.

* * *

_"How are you feeling?"_

_"Spare me your false pity."_

_"I'm just trying to make you feel better."_

_"I'll feel better once I'm dead."_

_"How optimistic."_

_"Do you have anything of use to say or what?"_

_"Are you going to tell him?"_

_"… Che. What different would it make? Not like he can get me Grief Seeds. I'm going to die."_

_"How sad."_

_"Hey, do me a favour."_

_"Hm?"_

_"Make another Puella Magi. Make sure she kills me before I do too much damage."_

* * *

The witch's barrier was a strange one. The outer layer was a maze of doors with crude, childish drawings of families scribbled on them. Through those doors was stars, comets and asteroids… Space was there. And in the centre, the Witch.

A huge being, as most Witches were, this Witch's body was translucent, rending it almost invisible against the cosmic backdrop. It's limbs were long and there were many of them. In the centre of its torso, where a human heart would be, was a glowing, violet meteorite.

Hiroto gripped his sword more tightly in his hand and launched himself forwards.

* * *

_"Who are you?"_

_"I'm Kyuubey!"_

_"What do you want…?"_

_"Would you like me to grant you a wish?"_

_"A wish?"_

_"Mm! I can grant you any wish at all. All you have to do is form a contract with me and become a Puer Magi!"_

_"Puer Magi… And what will I have to do?"_

_"Fight creatures called Witches, and gather Grief Seeds to keep your Soul Gem clean."_

_An image of Reina's cold eyes flashed in his mind._

_"I wish…"_

* * *

With one last cry, he plunged his sword into the heart of the Witch. The creature let out a scream, so loud than Hiroto was quite sure he'd gone deaf until it ended.

Of course, his screams didn't help the volume.

As the Witch crumbled beneath him, the light began fading from his eyes.

"You know, Reina… I wished to save you," With a dry laugh, his body collapsed onto the Grief Seed Reina had left behind.

Kyuubey's tail swished a few times.

"It's funny," The Incubator mused. "She wished that she wouldn't have to die alone."

Sparing one last glance at the corpse and the Seed, the creature hopped off the wall and wandered away.

* * *

Two funerals were held that week for two teenagers who had died for the sake of their wishes.

The sad thing is, however, neither of their wishes were needed.

Had they let fate take its course, they would have known this. She would have died knowing others were there, and he would have brought comfort to her.

Alas, it is too late now.

Two fresh corpses have joined with the earth, shells of what the two could have been, had they not been tempted by selfish wishes.

Such is life.

* * *

**a/n: wow this was unusually dark for me wow„„„„„„„„ also sorry for killing madomagi canon and making hiroto a magical boy but shut up story purposes**

**i love these two a lot and i've written a lot of fluff about them but angst**

**i'm sorry**

**next chapter might be the mei trio again or one of my crackships but idk„„„„**


	5. ch5 -- kitanishi

**a/n: i'M ALIVE I SWEAR... i have prelims this week though, so updates are gonna come reeeeeaaaaaaal slow until i'm done.**

**so uhm have this three am brain barf until then...**

**characters/pairings: Kita/Nishinosora**

**rating: K**

**warnings: none**

**notes: THESE DORKS**

* * *

"Kitaaaaa,"

Silence.

"Hey, Kitaaaaaaa,

Silence.

"Kitaaaaaa,"

Silence.

"Ichibaaaaaan,"

Silence.

Pouting, Nishinosora leaned his forehead against his boyfriend's back.

"Ichiban, pay attention to me," He whined, wrapping his arms loosely around Kita's waist. "I'm bored."

"Nishinosora, please. I'm trying to get this finished," The red-haired boy ignored the other male's whining, focused solely on the essay in front of him. "We can do whatever when I'm done."

"But Ichibaaaan," The blonde whinged, groaning slightly. "I'm bored." Kita sighed.

"I know you're bored," He replied, trying to pacify the other. "But the more you distract me, the longer this will take, and the less time we'll have together."

Sighing dramatically, Nishinosora removed his arms from around Kita and fell back, splaying out on the floor behind the low table. He stared at the ceiling for what felt like hours (although in reality, it was only two minutes) then sat up again.

"Are you done now?"

"Oh for the love of… Nishinosora, it's been literally two minutes since you last asked. No, I'm not done."

"Aagh…" With a defeated groan, Nishinosora fell back once more and pouted at the ceiling again. Really, it wasn't fair! Kita had so much schoolwork lately, and it meant that he had less time to spend with his beloved boyfriend than he used to. And worst of all, only they seemed to be affected by the sudden increase in schoolwork. Hayabusa still got to see that Mitsuyoshi of his whenever he wanted, and Andou and Hoshifuru were still as antagonistic and bothersome to each other as they usually were. But Kita was always so preoccupied with his work that Nishinosora felt as though he never saw his boyfriend anymore.

Perhaps he felt bad about blowing him off, or perhaps he picked up on his sadness, but after Nishinosora had been lying down for a few minutes, Kita put down his pen, turned, leaned down and kissed him quickly on the lips.

"I'm nearly done," He promised, ignoring the blonde's look of surprise. "I'll be done in ten minutes, tops."

At the news, Nishinosora immediately broke out into a wide grin. As the red-head turned back to his essay, the blonde sat up the shuffled round to his boyfriend's side, and leaned on him, resting his head on his shoulder. Kita smiled at the act, touching his cheek to Nishinosora's head.

"I love you, Ichiban,"

"I love you too, Yoichi."

* * *

**a/n: i love these too hfndgfhdj**


	6. ch 6 -- hirorei2

**a/n: hey how you guys doing**

**yeah i'm not writing as much lately cause my ipod battery fricked up and i cant write w/o my music so**

**yeah**

**yeah so have this thing i wrote a while back ahahahaha**

**characters/pairings: hiroto/reina (ulvida)**

**rating: K+**

**warnings: eh**

**notes: GO timeline, implied relationship**

* * *

Getting her to stop working and getting her to go to bed was a challenge that Kira Hiroto had to face almost every night of his life.

Reina was a complete workaholic; always had been, always would be. It was an endearing trait, until she started staying up three nights in a row and became the embodiment of pure evil. Therefore, Hiroto made it his job to make sure she went to bed at a decent hour.

(He really didn't want a repeat of what had happened last time Reina had gone three days without sleep; his face started hurting if he even thought about it.)

He usually went to bed first, stayed up reading for a bit, and if she didn't come in by the time he had finished three chapters, he would have to go and fetch her.

That night was one of those nights.

Sighing quietly, Hiroto placed his book on the bedside table and slid out of bed. He stretched his legs, then made his way out of the bedroom, and into Reina's study.

As expected, she was hunched over her laptop, fingers flying over the keys, tapping out a furious rhythm. She had forgotten to turn on a light — again — and her face was ridiculously close to the screen. He watched her for a moment, then sighed and moved behind her, placing his hands gently on her shoulders.

"Reina," He began wearily. "Come to bed."

"I can't," She replied, not even looking at him as she continued typing. "I need to get these notes on Alpha Centuri down before I forget it, then I need to check out the reports on the new galaxy that's been discovered, and there's also Fumiko's report on Ceres and Ruru's on Pallas and—"

"That can wait until tomorrow," Hiroto said firmly, grabbing onto the arms of her chair and pulling her backwards, ignoring her noises of protest. "You need sleep. Come on."

"But I—"

"Sleep," He insisted, closing her laptop and spinning the chair round to face him. "No arguments."

"But this is important!"

"So is sleeping," He replied, and then stooped down, hooked one arm under her legs, the other around her waist, and lifted her up. She yelped in surprise (she still wasn't used to him doing that, dammit) and instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck, clinging on so she wouldn't fall. He immediately set off towards the bedroom, before she started flailing and protesting. She was about to, in truth, but was interrupted by her own yawn.

"See, you're tired," He pointed out. "You'll be able to work better when you're well-rested."

"… I suppose…"

"You know I'm right," He teased lightly, kicking the door to their bedroom open and setting her down on her side of the bed. She yawned once more and slid under the blankets, turning on her side, effectively facing away from him.

"You angry?" He asked, taking off him glasses and setting them on the bedside table.

"Yes," She grumbled sleepily. He laughed slightly, joining her under the sheets, then turned off the light.

"Really?"

"Yes…" She mumbled, with less conviction this time. A few moments passed, before she turned onto her other side and cuddled up to him. "I'm cold." Was all she said. He smiled in the darkness, rolling onto his side and resting one arm on her waist.

"I'll warm you up," Hiroto said softly. She made a noise of embarrassment, but came closer anyway, resting her forehead on his shoulder. For a time, the only sounds were of their breathing. Just as Reina was drifting off, however, he said the thing he always told her.

"I love you," He whispered, and she smiled.

"I love you too," She murmured.

And soon, they slept.

* * *

**a/n: dud ending sorry**

**yeah i should be back in action around thursday-ish so uhm**

**yeah**


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